below the line to consider himself able to say I love you, but he hadn’t said it.
She’d wanted to go slow, and he’d agreed. He wasn’t going to bring up marriage until she did. In fact, Bishop had decided not to bring up any serious topics until she’d broached marriage. None of the others mattered if they weren’t going to get married.
In his mind, he could already see them married, living on the ranch somewhere with Aurora, and blissfully happy. They’d design their house together, and build it together, and live in it until the day they died. They’d be buried in the Glover family cemetery, and Bishop could imagine it all.
“Let’s go to dinner,” she said, tugging on his hand.
“Yes,” he said, trying to focus on reality. He took her to The Rooftop Garden, which was one huge buffet of gourmet foods. Just their wall of desserts was worth the high price tag, in Bishop’s opinion.
She talked about her family first, and then the bid, and then how far she’d come on her spiritual journey toward relying more on the Lord and releasing the burdens she’d been carrying herself for so long.
“I’m real proud of you, sweetheart,” he said as he pulled up to her house. “You’re so inspiring.”
“Not really,” she said, sobering now and reverting to her more normal, quiet self. “Someone inspiring would’ve been able to just go, ‘take it all, Lord,’ and move on. I’ve been working for months now.”
“You’re working on it,” he said. “That’s what’s amazing.” He had a few things to work on himself, but his progress was a lot slower than hers.
“How’s your self-care going?” she asked.
“Good,” he said. “And the counselor was for Cactus, though if you ever tell him I told you that, I’ll deny it.” He meant it too, but he chuckled anyway.
“You love Cactus,” she said simply.
“Very much,” Bishop said, looking at the light coming from the windows. “You want to sit in the swing for a bit?”
“Sure,” she said, and she got out of the truck and met him at the corner of the hood. She took his hand and led him up the steps and across the porch to the swing there.
He sighed as he sat down, letting the country stillness seep through him. “We need more swings at Shiloh Ridge,” he said. “This is real nice.” He toed them forward and back, happy to have her curled into his side, a full stomach, and a beautiful summer night in Texas.
“Bishop?” she asked.
“Yeah, baby?”
“Remember how you asked me once if I wanted more children?”
He tensed, his foot stuttering along the surface of the porch. “Yes.”
“If the man I fell in love with wanted children of his own—my children, our children—I’d have them if I could.”
Bishop smiled into the gathering darkness and tucked her tighter into his side. He was definitely in love with Montana Martin, and he definitely wanted his children to be her children. He kept all of that to himself for now, and when it was time for him to head back to the ranch, he stood on Montana’s porch and kissed her like a man in love with her.
He wouldn’t have to say I love you out loud, because surely, she could feel it in every stroke of his mouth against hers.
Bishop passed Lincoln on the steps as the boy streaked down them, in hot pursuit of his dog. “Give that back!” he yelled after Benny, and Bishop laughed. That dog loved socks, and he would not give it back without a significantly tasty treat in return.
At the top of the steps, Sammy smiled at him. “Hello, Bishop.”
“Hey, Sammy.”
“He’s all yours this afternoon.” She patted his chest. “Good luck. He’s not in a great mood.”
“Great,” Bishop said darkly. “Why didn’t you sweeten him up for me?”
“I’m perfectly sweet,” Bear said. “Have fun with your parents, love.” He cocked his head as Lincoln continued to yell at his dog to drop the sock. “What’s that about?”
“Nothing,” Sammy said. “I’ll take care of it. Have fun with Bishop.”
“Thanks again, Sammy,” Bishop said as she went down the steps, one hand lightly on the bannister. He faced his brother, who certainly didn’t look sweet as he came out of the suite and looked over the railing. “Benny stole a sock.”
“Of course he did,” Bear said, and he didn’t sound sweet either. Maybe Bishop should abort this mission. Just as quickly as he’d thought it, he dismissed the idea. He’d been putting this off long enough as